September 20, 2024

A delegation from the Syrian Negotiation Commission, accompanied by civil society representatives, held a series of high-level meetings in Geneva with European and international organizations dedicated to Syrian issues, particularly human rights, transitional justice, and the plight of missing persons.

These discussions included engagements with officials from the International Commission of Inquiry on Syria, the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Human Rights Office of the UN Special Envoy, the International Commission on Missing Persons in Syria, and several diplomatic missions from countries supportive of the Syrian people.

The Commission’s delegation featured the head of the legal office, lawyer Tarek Kurdi, and the deputy director of the Commission’s office in Geneva. Civil society representatives included Mouayad Skif and Dr. Tawfiq Al-Shamaa.

During the meetings, the delegation underscored the critical need to ensure accountability for the Syrian regime and to prevent it from evading punishment for crimes committed against Syrians. They emphasized the importance of integrating transitional justice processes into both the political solution and its aftermath. The discussions also focused on the conditions of Syrian refugees in neighboring countries, particularly those in Lebanon, and the specific challenges faced by detained refugees.

The dialogue highlighted the urgent need for international pressure on the Syrian regime to release detainees unconditionally and to reveal the fate of all missing persons. The delegation called for the establishment of mechanisms to prevent the regime from continuing its practices of detention, enforced disappearance, and torture. They noted that the Syrian regime has not altered its repressive tactics aimed at terrorizing Syrians and that its claims of reform are mere deceptions intended to mislead the international community. The delegation stressed the importance of implementing relevant international resolutions on the Syrian issue, particularly the Geneva Communiqué and UN Security Council Resolutions 2254 and 2118, alongside other topics directly impacting the Syrian people.